ARLINGTON -- Troy Fumagalli wasn't the first option on Wisconsin's most pivotal third-down play of the Goodyear Cotton Bowl.

First, Wisconsin senior quarterback Bart Houston looked toward senior Rob Wheelwright, who was covered. Then Houston's eyes shifted in the direction of Fumagalli. If the junior tight end wasn't open, Houston was ready to find another option to pick up a key first down late in the fourth quarter.

"I didn't get that far," Houston said. "Fum was wide open."

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Fumagalli's 26-yard reception late in the game sealed CFP No. 8 Wisconsin's 24-16 win over No. 15 Western Michigan on Monday at AT&T Stadium. Fumagalli was named the game's outstanding offensive player following his six-catch, 83-yard, one-touchdown performance.

Wisconsin isn't known for throwing the ball around. But after WMU (13-1) made an effort to stop the Badgers' rushing attack, Wisconsin (11-3) and its 6-6 tight end made the most of their opportunities.

"They started playing downhill, bringing an extra guy, bringing a safety down," Fumagalli said of the Broncos. "And you can't do both [stop the run and the pass] sometimes. So we took advantage of that."

In the first quarter, Wisconsin ran out to a 14-0 lead behind senior running back Corey Clement. Sixteen of the Badgers' first 20 plays were runs. Two of Fumagalli's catches came in the first 15 minutes.

Then WMU adjusted. The Broncos brought defenders closer to the line of scrimmage and stifled Wisconsin's running game. The Badgers rushed for only 50 yards in the middle two quarters, including 8 in the third quarter.

Fumagalli, who had a finger amputated on his left hand days after birth because of a medical condition, made a key catch using only that hand on Wisconsin's first scoring drive. He continued to make similar catches throughout the game as he took advantage of his height advantage over WMU defenders and their coverage scheme.

After the game, Western Michigan coach P.J. Fleck said many of Fumagalli's catches were contested by his defenders. But there was little the Broncos could do about the athletic tight end.

"That's the best tight end we have faced in the four years here," Fleck said. "He's incredible."

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Houston and Wisconsin's other quarterback, freshman Alex Hornibrook, combined for only 14 pass attempts. Half were in Fumagalli's direction.

"If you put it up in his area code, he'll come down with it," Houston said. "That's really what showed today, except for that one incompletion."

Houston wasn't too upset about Wisconsin's only incompletion of the afternoon. It came when a pass slipped out of Fumagalli's grasp near the back edge of the end zone.

It was only a minor miscue on a day when Wisconsin's passing attack was clicking any time the Badgers opted to throw.

During the regular season, Wisconsin had the fourth-fewest passing attempts in the Big Ten. Fumagalli was second on the team in receptions, a testament to how much the Badgers use the tight end position in its run-heavy offense.

Wisconsin coach Paul Chryst called Monday's game a chess match.

His team's early running success forced Western Michigan into a countermove. Wisconsin responded by using Fumagalli, who helped seal the Badgers' marquee bowl win.